Ollie Bearman was thrust into the F1 spotlight in 2024 when he made a last-minute substitute appearance for Ferrari and later filled in at Haas. Those impressive displays earned him a full-time opportunity for 2025 and, at the end of a whirlwind rookie season, he has only enhanced his reputation as one of the sport\u2019s brightest young talents. Shortly before it drew to a close, the 20-year-old Briton sat down with F1.com to relive the journey\u2026<\/p>\n
Thursday afternoon\u2019s media duties ahead of the Mexico City Grand Prix weekend are in full swing, with Bearman jumping between broadcast and written interviews for outlets from all over the world before joining us in the sun outside Haas\u2019 hospitality unit.<\/p>\n
Bearman finds his F1 feet<\/p>\n
Race suit tied around his waist, a wide smile on his face, and carrying a relaxed demeanour, Bearman looks completely at ease with life in the paddock \u2013 as if he is a veteran of the sport, rather than a newcomer who has little more than 20 Grands Prix under his belt.<\/p>\n
After going through the trials and tribulations often experienced by F1 rookies earlier in the season, Bearman has hit a strong run of form, starting with a superb sixth-place finish at the Dutch Grand Prix and backed up by P9 results in Singapore and Austin.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m really happy with how it\u2019s been going, especially the second half of the season,\u201d Bearman tells F1.com as we begin to review the year \u2013 and his proper step up to the top echelon. \u201cIt\u2019s been a lot more controlled and less of a blur than before. Those three races I did last year were quite crazy, but I\u2019ve managed to find my feet in F1.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was still a bit overwhelming [at the start] to have so many commitments and things to do during a race weekend, because you\u2019re so busy compared to what I\u2019ve been used to in F2, but that\u2019s something I\u2019ve been able to handle better as time goes on.<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course, I\u2019m very aware of how lucky I am to be here, and I\u2019m enjoying every single moment. Stepping up to F1 is a dream that I\u2019ve been trying to achieve for my entire life. I\u2019ve bonded with the team and we\u2019ve worked well together so far.\u201d<\/p>\n
As it transpired, Bearman hit another peak in his burgeoning F1 career at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, where he made the most of Haas\u2019 recently upgraded car in the tricky high-altitude conditions to secure a spot in Q3, then launched it into the top six places on the first lap and ultimately came away with P4.<\/p>\n
It was a gutsy, elbows out drive \u2013 you only have to ask four-time World Champion Max Verstappen about their exchange through the esses \u2013 that reminded onlookers of his exploits in Saudi Arabia<\/a> and Azerbaijan<\/a> in 2024, and reinforced why Ferrari have been backing him as one of their junior drivers for so many years.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a feel-good moment,\u201d Bearman smiled to me in the media pen after that race, holding back tears as his mother, father and partner watched on. \u201cTo go side-by-side with Max is a very cool feeling; he\u2019s someone I have basically grown up watching in F1, so it\u2019s awesome. I\u2019m really proud of the job we did.\u201d<\/p>\n Lessons on and off the track<\/p>\n Bearman\u2019s points-scoring charge would extend to Sao Paulo (where he finished sixth) and Las Vegas (10th), making it the longest run of all the rookies on the F1 grid in 2025, while banishing the memories of some painful moments from the first half of the year.<\/p>\n Alongside a pair of crashes at the season opener in Australia and a few tricky Qualifying sessions, there were red flag violations during practice in Monaco and Great Britain that triggered costly 10-place grid drops on both occasions \u2013 the latter \u201csilly\u201d incident sending him from a fine eighth on the grid to 18th, and leaving him outside the points on race day.<\/p>\n \u201cThere have been some mistakes that I wasn\u2019t proud of or happy with,\u201d he says, before pointing out: \u201cI\u2019m also allowing myself space for these errors, because I\u2019m aware of my position. I\u2019m a rookie, I\u2019m still learning, and I\u2019m building up. These mistakes are going to happen.<\/p>\n \u201cI feel like everything so far has been a great opportunity to learn and improve. That\u2019s really the most important thing. It doesn\u2019t happen overnight. It\u2019s a continuation and a big learning process. That\u2019s what I\u2019ve been doing well this year.\u201d<\/p>\n In addition to those on-track situations, Bearman has learnt a huge amount about life as an F1 driver off the track, particularly when it comes to working effectively with his engineers and mechanics, and making the most of any car developments.<\/p>\n